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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. file — a line of people
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. land — a country
  5. fall — to drop
  6. suit — in cards
  7. last — finally
  8. suit — to fit
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. land — ground
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. fall — to drop
  14. last — to go on
  15. fall — the season
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. land — to come down
  19. file — a document
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. last — final
  22. file — a tool
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. trunk — of an elephant

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com